Found this through a site I've looked through before and that was recently posted. Don't agree with all of it but highlighted the portion that is quite good IMO.

from http://www.myodynamics.com/articles/pavel.html

Quote:

"I have tried lifting weights to add power to my striking and grappling techniques. Since I want to build endurance, as well as strength, I do three sets of ten to twenty reps to failure on all my exercises. The problem is, I get so sore and tired, that I have no energy left for my martial arts practice! What am I doing wrong?"

Everything. The punch bag who came up with the light weights/high reps formula for martial artists did not have a slightest clue about either strength training or martial arts.

The best strength training formula for a fighting man or woman is heavy, 80-95% 1RM, weights, and low, 1-5, repetitions. There are at least five reasons why:

1. Heavy weights build strength.

It is the muscular tension, not fatigue, that you should maximize in training if strength is your goal. There are plenty of studies, for instance Goldberg et. al (1975), to support this notion. The heavier is the weight you are lifting, the higher is the tension. It is that simple.

2. Strength endurance gained with ten, twenty, or more, reps is not specific to hand to hand combat.

You would be a lot better off doing a few rounds on a heavy bag or Thai pads. Iron is just for strength, period. Leave the sissy high rep stuff to aerobic instructors..

3. Low rep training causes minimal fatigue and muscle soreness.

Strength endurance work of the kind that you and most martial artists favour takes a lot longer to recover from that one to five rep strength work (Roman, 1962). High repetitions also make you a lot more sore. Does not it make sense to perform your conditioning in a manner which does not interfere with the practice of your fighting art?

4. High reps build useless tissue and break down real muscle.

One of the reasons bodybuilders are generally a lot weaker than they look is that their muscles ainít real. Repetition lifting of a submaximal weight, the bodybuilding choice, promotes sarcoplasmic hypertrophy, or an increase in the volume of worthless jello like filler inside the muscle, while breaking down the contractile proteins, the "real" muscle (Nikityuk &amp; Samoylov, 1990).

5. Heavy low rep training is the safest way to lift.

No, I have not been hit on the head a few times too many. I will give you at least two reasons why heavy, low rep weight training is much safer than lifting a light weight a lot of times. First, the stabilizing muscles get tired before the prime movers in high rep sets, which sets you up for an injury. When you do a set of twenty squats, your back gets tired before your legs and sooner or later you will get hurt! On a five rep set your legs will be first to go. Second, when you lift a weight which is heavier than eighty percent of your maximum, you can get superstrong without training to failure. Ed Coan who posted the highest powerlifting total of all time not long ago always racks his monstrous weights a rep or two short of his limit! If you want to know the hows and whys, check out my new book Power to the People!: Russian Strength Training Secrets for Every American.

With all of the above in mind, here is the program of choice. Perform three core lifts: the squat, the bench press, and the deadlift. Squat and bench on Monday, then press again and deadlift on Thursday. Upper body exercises tax your body less than leg and back work, that is why you get to bench twice a week.

Finish both power workouts with abdominal work in the same heavy weight, low rep mode. Use your favourite exercise, or take your pick of the full contact ab drills from my book Beyond Crunches: Hard Science. Hard Abs. It will do you good to visit my seminar on ab training at the Arnold Schwarzenegger Classic 2000 as well.

Do five sets of five, four, three, two, and, one reps. Add a little weight, 2,5-10 pounds after every set. Rest for as many minutes as the number of reps you have just done: 5 reps, 5 min, 4 reps, 4 min, 3 reps, 3 min, 2 reps, 2 min, 1 rep, go home.

Start the program with weights you can easily lift for the prescribed number of repetitions. Add a little weight every third workout until you can barely make your reps, then take a week off lifting. When you come back to the gym, start another power cycle with comfortable weights, and build up to your new personal best in eight to twelve weeks.

The results will be spectacular. You will build great strength without stealing time or energy from your martial art practice. Who can expect more from a conditioning program?

Pavel Tsatsouline, Master of Sports, is a former physical training instructor for Spetsnaz, the Soviet Special Forces. He has a degree in coaching and physiology from IFK, the Physical Culture Institute, in the Soviet Union. Pavel was nationally ranked in the Russian ethnic strength sport of kettle-bell lifting and has authored three books, Beyond Stretching, Beyond Crunches, and Power to the People! Go to dragondoor.com or call (800) 899-5111 for a free catalogue.

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My single chopstick is bad at serving soup, cutting steaks and basting roasts and chickens. Besides that it owns.

8/19/2003 10:47pm,

Boyd

Quote:

The best strength training formula for a fighting man or woman is heavy, 80-95% 1RM, weights, and low, 1-5, repetitions.

personally i have no choice on that matter right now, once i get to university in sept i can hit the gym and use heavier weights...i'll try this then

"One of the reasons bodybuilders are generally a lot weaker than they look is that their muscles ainít real. "
*Grin*

i THINK he meant to say, their muscles cannot function the same way a powerlifter's can.

--
Hard Work, Patience, Dedication

Fighting Multiples - http://bullshido.com/article_read.asp?id=162

8/20/2003 10:38am,

lechuza

Dochter,
thanks for the post. I've been confused by the high rep. vs. low rep. debate (as it apllies to strength training) for a while.

8/20/2003 10:54am,

Phrost

Bought the book last night. Should be here soon. Maybe I'll put up a review of my own.

8/20/2003 10:54am,

Southpaw

I guess that explains why bodybuilders always get their asses handed to them in the "World's Stongest Man" Competitions.

These events are usually won by some nordic men who closely resemble bears.

8/20/2003 10:55am,

Phrost

Exactly. What the hell do they eat in Scandanavia anyway?

8/20/2003 11:52am,

matzahbal

Quote:

"I guess that explains why bodybuilders always get their asses handed to them in the "World's Stongest Man" Competitions.

From what I understand it's because body builders have no ligament strength. Because you got the nordic guys that sit there and lift heavy **** all day for their job versus some prissy boy he spends 2 hours in the gym and then goes to some desk job.

Kungfoolss, Joke of the theory-based stylists, Most laughed at man at Bullshido.com, creator of the Kungfoolss Darwinian Awards that nobody cares for, and the Preeminent Force in the martial arts political arena in his own head.

8/20/2003 12:46pm,

Omega Supreme

I only agree with some of the results. I wonder what the person's martial art background would be to help him come to this conclusion. I've consulted weight lifting coaches with PHD's on the subject and have had varying responses. Universally though high reps are good but you'd have to reduce the sets. You're not supposed to lift until fatigue for martial arts practice which is where I find the problem lies in the above scenerio.

Official WTDude Badass Evil Genius

8/20/2003 3:31pm,

lechuza

there's a lot of variations on this lift, but I like doing clean and jerk reps. It's the classic power lifters lift. I like to do three sets of 8 either at 90 lbs. or 135--depending on my motivation that day. This lift hits a lot of diverse muscle groups at once and really gets your heart pumping.